It was a move that surprised everybody outside of a conference room in Texas. Notre Dame was left out of the CFP last Sunday. Now, just a few days later, the ripple effect is causing something that anybody could’ve seen coming.
Notre Dame opted out of their bowl game, and an MOU came to light. It guarantees Notre Dame a spot in a 12 or 14 team playoff next year and beyond. As long as they are ranked high enough.
Was It The Right Choice?
Everybody kept pointing to the head-to-head versus Miami as the reason. It was the one thing that made people believe Notre Dame deserved to miss the playoffs. Honestly, the real travesty is the fact that Alabama did not drop after being blown out by Georgia.
On the other hand, BYU was severely punished for losing the Big 12 title game. As well as Ohio State dropped one spot after falling to Indiana in the Big Ten title game. That is the one thing everybody wanted to know—how Alabama stayed put. Despite three losses, one of which came to a 5-7 Florida State team.
Well, the simple answer is no, it was not the correct choice. Truthfully, I’m biased, but most people would agree. Notre Dame got absolutely hosed by the college football playoff committee. As they were used to prop up the weekly ranking show only to be left out in the end. You can’t help but wonder if this was the plan all along.
It actually got so bad that even Irish detractors feel they were wronged. Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua came out and said the ACC did significant damage to their relationship. Meaning Notre Dame could explore leaving their ACC contract for other conferences. The Big 12 could be a possible landing spot for Notre Dame athletics. I would like them to join the Big Ten with all the natural rivalries already in place. Five games a year against Big Ten schools would be a huge boost to the strength of the schedule.
What’s Next For Notre Dame?
Well knowing Marcus Freeman, this team is going to be on a warpath in 2026. Yes, they will be without the two best running backs in the country. But, this Notre Dame team is still loaded, and the future is bright. So you can expect Notre Dame to be a playoff contender once again in 2026. This time around, they should also be included in the playoffs as well.
Their schedule isn’t the toughest in the country. But when they’re scheduled years in advance, you can’t really change things. One thing is for certain: you can only play who is in front of you. With that said, the thought of an undefeated season does not seem too far removed from reality.
2026 Notre Dame Football Schedule
September 6th: @ Wisconsin (Green Bay, WI)
12th: vs. Rice
19th: vs. Michigan State
26th: @ Purdue
October 3rd: North Carolina
31st: vs Navy (Foxborough, MA)
November 7th: vs Miami (FL)
21st: vs. Boston College
TBD:
@ USC
vs. SMU
vs. Stanford
@ Syracuse
The Ripple Effect
Notre Dame opting out of a bowl game could be the start of the fall of the bowl system. Non-playoff bowls could see more teams opting out at the end of the year, not wanting to risk injuries. But it’s not just Notre Dame; over ten teams opted out of bowl games this year. It could also lead to further playoff expansion, with new ideas already being.
The Big Ten conference floated the idea of a 24-team playoff, mirroring the FCS model. Where the top four teams from the SEC, ACC, Big 12, and Big Ten would all get auto-bids. The remaining eight slots would be six at-large bids and a pair of groups of five auto-bids. The first two rounds would be played at the higher-seeded team’s stadium. It would also mean the elimination of conference championship games.
Big Ten: Ohio State, Indiana, Oregon, USC
SEC: Georgia, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Oklahoma
Big 12: Texas Tech, BYU, Utah, Arizona
ACC: Miami, Virginia, Georgia Tech, SMU
G5: James Madison, Tulane
At-Large: ND, Bama, Texas, Vandy, Michigan, Houston
While I am in agreement with the 24-team proposal. There are changes I would make to the allocation of bids. As I feel they would need to include every conference champion from all 10 FBS conferences in the field. Which means Kennesaw State, Western Michigan, and Duke would all get bids in this format. If you want to read more about my proposal for the new CFB playoff format, click here.
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